Westfield Optimistic About Holiday Sales

The holiday shopping rush has begun, and Westfield Santa Anita officials say they expect a 4 percent growth over last year's sales. Marketing Director Steve Jaffe said mall tenants reported solid foot traffic Black Friday, though actual sales figures for the day won't be available until next month.

"I think it was a very positive day and everybody felt very strong about the sales and the attendance," Jaffe said. "So overall we're feeling very positive, very strong."

Westfield's projection would be right on target with the National Retail Federation forecast of a 4.1 percent increase in holiday sales. Though that would be a dip from 2011’s 5.6 percent growth, it still beats the 10-year average growth of 3.5 percent.

Westfield has evolved quite a bit in recent years. In 2000, the mall added 600,000 square-feet of retail space, along with with two restaurant pads on the northwest side.

Earlier this  year, a Bardot handcrafted ice cream shop opened in Centre Court on Level 2, Plops cake balls opened in the food court, and Oro Gold Cosmetics moved to a new location in the mall.

In October, the city expanded Westfield's conditional use permit, allowing the mall operators to add a car wash, massage chairs and a ballroom dance studio.